The Carrot? Or the Stick? Which Do THEY Prefer? – Part 2

In Part One of this article, we discussed YOU and why you do the things you do. Specifically, we talked about WHY people do or don’t do things for two primary reasons: To gain pleasure or to avoid pain. This is also known as the Carrot or the Stick – the carrot is something good that we want, while the stick represents the pain we don’t want.

We also mentioned a few common things that most people in this world want/desire, like love, money, and good health as well as a few things that most people don’t want/are afraid of, like fear of missing out, getting hurt, rejection, or clowns. ;)

Finally, we talked about some stuff that you might not like – why you may not be as successful as you’d like to be, or why you don’t always do some of the things you know you should be doing.

In other words, we started with YOU. Still stuck on that? Ok, go back and read the article again. But if you’re ready to move on, let’s go…

It all comes down to TWO things: The Carrot and the Stick.

The CARROT represents something GOOD that we WANT, while the STICK represents something BAD that we DON’T want.

In THIS article, we’re going to talk about how to get what you want from others by understanding their key motivations, and how to best position yourself so that you have an incredibly powerful advantage over others. Maybe that might help you? :)

It goes without saying that once you truly know yourself, you can begin to understand everyone around you. Now that you’re armed with those convenient lists above, let’s see how we can help (or help influence) those sellers to sell their houses to US for OUR Terms, shall we?

Ok, let’s break this down & figure this out, Carrot & Stick style!

First, the CARROT: What do most sellers want? To sell their house, duh! But HOW? What’s important to them? What do they truly WANT, and what do they want to AVOID? Even though this is a case-by-case basis, I think we’d agree that most sellers have several things in common. They desire to have a fair, easy sale of their house so that they can accomplish their goals and move on with their lives. They want to feel like they sold their house for a fair price and that they are getting some VALUE for selling.

Now for the STICK: What they don’t want is to have their time wasted, deal with someone they don’t like, know, or trust, and I think it’s safe to say that they don’t want to feel like you’re taking advantage of them. Agreed?

So now that you know all that, HOW will you treat them? WHAT will you say, and how will you say it? Be sure to refer to my earlier articles about these topics.

Something else that’s important to consider: Your MARKET. Is it hot? Are there a lot of buyers? Are people offering full price, all cash? If that’s the case, the only way you’re going to have a snowball’s chance in hell with informed sellers in these markets is to develop an emotional bond with them & offer them something no one else can.

Maybe they really want to make more money from selling their house, so you can demonstrate how selling to you with owner financing can do that. Show them how much it truly costs to sell their house the traditional way (average 10% cost of sale), and how you can save them that money instead. Or maybe they really want a fast solution that makes sense because they have some sort of immediate need. So frame your offer around that.

A good stick to use for many sellers is the time-sensitive offer. As we’ve already agreed, most humans have a FEAR of MISSING OUT. So even though it may seem counter-intuitive, I highly suggest you put a DEADLINE on the offers you make, such as “This offer expires Friday at 6 p.m.” Something like that works quite nicely.

Naturally, some sellers will call you back after that deadline, and while you might still want to do business, at least you’ll have a reason to re-negotiate a deal.

The final (and most powerful) figurative stick you can use with sellers is the one that few investors truly grasp, despite the fact that it’s the most obvious one at your disposal: The Seller’s own self-stated reason for selling. Why are they selling their house? Specifically – what is the potential painful outcome that may happen if they DON’T sell their house?

Now, if the seller with whom you’re talking doesn’t seem to have any real need, then you may not be dealing with the right type of seller. For example, if they say the reason they’re selling is to ‘test out the market,’ or ‘because it just seems like the right time,’ and you can’t get anything else out of them, you’re probably going to be wasting your time by continuing to attempt to negotiate a deal. They don’t have much motivation and you can’t provide much value in this transaction. These are suspects, not prospects.

But if they say that they have a job transfer that’s taking them clear across the country, they have to be out in 3 weeks, and they don’t have any offers on their beautiful house, now you’re in the game!

In this example, you’d want to agitate their pain. Give them a taste of what the stick might feel like if they don’t sell their house. In this case, you could ask them something like, “What would you do if you’re not able to sell your house? Would you probably just rent it out? Gosh, have you ever been a landlord? Have you ever dealt with tenants? Can you imagine what that would be like if you’re 2,000 miles away??”

Can you see the magic here? By giving them an idea of what the negative outcome might be if they’re not able to reach their goal, they’re now emotionally open to the possibility of YOUR alternative solution that would make sure that doesn’t happen!

Oh, by the way, this also works in just about any sales, social, parenting, or business situation. Use these tactics wisely, grasshopper.

Congratulations! You now know more secret psychological strategies that can help get you more business, close more deals, and get what you want out of life whenever you’re dealing with other people. Combined with the self-mastery we discussed in part one of this article, and you’re well on your way to being as rich and successful as you want to be.

The only thing left to do is set yourself up to succeed. How? Ha, you should know by now: Give yourself an incentive to do well (work for a carrot), while at the same time have personal consequences for not taking the appropriate actions (the stick). Don’t punish yourself for failure, because we don’t always have control over the outcome. We can only control our ACTIONS, attitudes, and beliefs.

For example, if you make a simple goal of calling 10 sellers today, and you accomplish that goal, you’ll reward yourself by eating…something special (almost had you there!). That’s your ‘carrot.’ But if you DON’T do what you set out to do, you don’t get that reward – and/or you have to do something embarrassing. In front of people. That’s your ‘stick.’

I think you get the idea. What you do with it now is up to you. And I think I’ll close this up like I did the last article by saying, “Now go grab a carrot!”

Until Next Time,

Tony Pearl

Tony Pearl is an entrepreneur, copywriter, proud father, mentor, marketing consultant and talented teacher who resides in the Washington, DC area. He has traveled to over 26 countries, speaks 4 languages, and continues to travel extensively. He has been a professional Ballroom and Latin dance instructor, competitor, and exhibitor for over 19 years. As a Real Estate Investor, Tony has bought and sold over Ten Million dollars worth of real estate, and has been educated by and associates with the best.